Frugal finds

Four scarves, $2.25 at the local MCC today. One wool, one hand-screened, one typical 70s design, one thin. The photo - with it's not-so-great lighting - doesn't do the colours justice.

As I mentioned on Twitter a few hours ago, I'm really getting into this 'being thrifty' business. I'm going to start looking at the second-hand/thrift/restores more and more now... there's no way I could ever hope to find anything like these scarves in a big box store, even at what might pass for a normal retail price. Even the small bundles of material I keep coming across are incredibly unique and totally worth more than their price (usually between 50¢ & $1).

I'm working on starting a few new lines of product in the coming weeks and I'm hoping to do one made completely out of material and fabrics I've found the thrifty way. I'm always intrigued when I come across a piece made of repurposed fabric, and I hope others are too.

Learning lessons

So.

My first craft sale this weekend.

On the up side, I learned A LOT.

On the down side, I didn't even sell enough product to cover my table fee of $25.

I'm not terribly upset or distraught... I needed to find out how sales actually worked, especially in this rural-based, primarily-middle-class region. I have an idea now of what works and what doesn't - but I also know that what didn't work at this sale may be the absolute killer at the next.

A brief list of the big lessons learned this weekend:

• Just because you're selling something no one else at the sale is, doesn't mean you'll have no problems selling your product. Anyone who sews has pin cushions coming out their ears; needlebooks, while 'cute' and 'smart', are a great idea, perhaps not the best execution.
• Having an eye-pleasing display is important, especially if it includes various kinds of baking. Baking always sells fastest and first. The table next to ours was completely sold out one hour & 20 minutes into the sale. 
• While my parents have lived in Carberry for almost 14 years, I never did. Most of the people I know there are either friends of my parents or my younger sister. Probably the best thing I did for this sale was ask my mom to help me at the table. She knows EVERYONE in town and is much more outgoing than me...she brought in all three of my sales.
• Don't be saddened that the older couple across the way can sell homemade underwear; take their approach to selling, sift through it and see what might apply to you. Their table was overloaded with product - and not just homemade underwear - to the point where customers had to go through piles of tea towels and knitting and blankets just to get to what they wanted. More often than not, they'd find more than what they were looking for at the bottom of the pile, because something they had to sort through to get there caught their eye. That doesn't mean I'm going to haphazardly pile my product on my next table, hoping that people will go through it to find what they want; it does mean, however, that I need to work out a display that makes the customers go from one product to the next without losing their focus.
• Signage is so important, more important than I thought. I made up a couple of placecards with my business name on them, but that was it... until I got frustrated trying to explain to my mom - my helper for the day - which product was which. Then I made handwritten signs that I just kind of slid into the baskets. Next sale, signs and perhaps even a brief description on the signs will be accompanying the products. Also, a pronunciation guide for nisse (niss-eh) and a little historical background to what the word actually means. 

Yeah, I only made $17 and had 3 sales, but quite a few people did pick up the postcards I made up and there was some interest in doing some custom work in the near future. But more people know my name now than did on Friday and that's what I see as the biggest achievement from the sale. There aren't enough articles or tutorials in the world to learn these lessons.

A sale here, in rural southwestern Manitoba, will not be the same type of sale as one in Florida. Or even Winnipeg. There are very few - if any - craft sales held in the spring or summer around here. Craft sales and fall suppers go hand in hand for us, and everyone in the crafting/artisan world here knows when the big sales are and where the best ones are. It was an interesting and eye-opening experience, to say the least... and one that I'm sure I'll repeat over and over again, but with slight variations, for years to come.

I hope.

Stocking up

I've got stock in my new online shop at Cargoh - nisseworks - finally. I wasn't sure the photos I'd taken the other day of my pieces were going to be good enough, but with some tinkering and tweaking, they turned out fairly well. There's always room for improvement, and once I get my hands on a decent sized cardboard box to make a lightbox, I'll probably be redoing these photos, too.

So now I've got two online shops... I've been debating opening a third, strictly for my paper/digital design work. I'm not sure where the shop will end up being, but I know where it won't be (and I won't mention names here, but when those sites I've looked at feature on their front page blurry photos of mediocre work, I'm not sure I want to be associated with them). I'm aiming to have the next shop open in early September, depending on whether or not I get into the first craft sale this fall (still no word... grr). If I get in, it'll be later in September, but I've got Christmas and winter designs I want to do, so it's better to be sooner than later.

Picture it

Standard photoshoot props - lotions, lip balms, pens, iPod, business cards, sunglasses, scissors, and lint brush. 
The toothbrush was a random addition to this particular shoot.

It's photoshoot day for a good chunk of the pieces I've had sitting, waiting, to be listed in my shop for a few weeks now. Taking photos of my pieces is my least favourite thing to do - I find it tedious and frustrating, but I know the benefit of having good photos when you're trying to sell something to someone who can't actually physically touch your product. My product photos have improved a fair bit since I started my shop in March, but there's a massive amount of room for improvement, I'm sure.

I don't have a lightbox, but Craftgossip - one of my favourite crafting websites - linked to a blog post about making your own lightbox for next to nothing.  I've seen lightboxes online for $50 or more (closer to $100+), but as I'm still starting out and only have 2 sales under my belt, spending money on any extras just isn't going to happen... so if I can make something that will help me showcase my work better for next to nothing, I'm willing to try it.

Right now, I use a large piece of bristol/poster board for my backgrounds, for the most part. I've used our living room floor on occasion, too, depending on the size of the piece (bags & purses) or the material I've used (black corduroy). I don't use any fancy lighting, just the natural sunlight that comes in through the south-facing window of our laundry room. After using this set-up for the last 5 or 6 months, I think it's time I try something new, like a DIY lightbox.

I'm planning on reshooting all of my current pieces while Keith is away for 8 days covering a golf tournament later this month, if only because I like to torture myself with tedious, painful activities. In reality, I've got a second shop I'm working on (more on that tomorrow...) and I want to spruce up the Etsy one for fall and Christmas shopping. And with Keith being gone for so long, I won't have too much time to work on making any new pieces, so why not work on my photos?

Aim high, hit low

I had hoped that by this point in August, I'd be working just on pieces for my shop (or shops, more on that later), but no. As a procrastinator - as well as someone who isn't quite in the best of health - I should have known better. I've needed more sleep this month than any other in the last year, which usually means I'm dead asleep by 9pm most nights. My energy levels are pretty flat right now, so I've been sticking to doing less intensive work, like embroidery. And to top it all off, I get easily distracted.

So this weekend, I'm hoping to get a lot of work done, in amongst visiting with friends and family and taking care of Maddy. My to-do list is already done and ready to be ignored used to help me keep on track and get ready for what promises to be a busy fall.

Time is not on my side

Summer months are the optimal time to start planning for and getting your shop ready for the holiday season. Etsy's holiday season picks up from October through December. Harvest and Halloween seasons pick up as early as August, so start stocking up on and listing your holiday offerings now in preparation for the seasonal rush ahead
     • Media Tip: Press outlets begin finalizing their holiday issues and series in the summer. Have your holiday items listed, tagged, and available now for buyers and PR reps looking to pull items for holiday gift guides.

-From Etsy's Merchandising Desk: July Heats Up

Oh, holy crap.

I am not expecting to have anything from my shop catch the eye of any media folk and wind up in some magazine in time for the holiday season. I may be talented, but I'm not that talented.

Yet.

No, this just reminds me that the first craft sale that I want to be part of is in 3 months. Three months. Ninety days. Again, oh, holy crap.

I'm not sure what I'm going to sell at that sale, but I don't have enough stock for a sale. And trying to sell the same things I have in my Etsy shop is not going to happen, either (mainly because if I tried to do that, it would be just my luck to have everything in my shop sell online at the same time people are buying them off of me at a sale).

There's a small list in my notebook for ideas of what to make/sell at the sale (this is only the first; I'm aiming for two more, and I know there's at least one more for sure), but haven't actually started any of it. I've decided that I'm going to try to get as much product done and ready to list in my shop by the end of June so July will be when I come up with new products. What those products are is another question.

I've been debating about opening another shop, either on Etsy or one of the other online handmade sites (like Artfire or Zibbet), to see if I can sell my efforts elsewhere. But how much more time can I devote to doing things that may or may not sell? Already, it's what I think about the majority of the time; it's what I spend my 'spare' time doing; and it's an even more difficult financial commitment for someone who doesn't have an income. So, yeah... do I keep all my eggs in one basket or start spreading them out, even though it could be a waste, which is what I'm doing now is turning into.

*sigh*

Sometimes I wonder if things would have just been easier to keep working rather than putting all this effort into something that's not exactly succeeding (which is no one/thing's fault but my own)... at least by working at home, I get to spend time with Maddy and drown my sorrows in cartoons and reruns all day.

Poking the bear

I don't remember the last time we - as a family - had a chance to actually sit back and relax. I don't know if it's because we just believe we don't have any time now that Maddy's getting older or if my work is taking away what free time I used to have, but it would be nice if we - Keith, Maddy and me - could just stop all the fussing and rushing and go-go-go for a few days.

But, then again, if we did stop and relax, I think I'd have a breakdown because I wasn't doing something. I used to slack off with the best of them, but in the last few years - especially since Maddy was born - nothing drives me more nuts than doing nothing. Idle hands, devil's playground... well, not really. It's more of a 'I know I can be productive - let's see how' thing. Gets frustrating sometimes... tiring, too.

With three months of an open shop under my belt, there are many, MANY areas of this business that I need to focus on and learn more about. Promotions and marketing, for one; time organization for another. It's not enough to just produce pieces, you have to sell them to people, too... and putting pretty pictures of them online doesn't mean a damn thing. People can't see you if you don't show them where you are.

There's been a debate - for lack of a better term - in the Etsy forums for the last few months about why sales and views have been down. If you told me that without any back story (or accusations), I would think that a lack of sales would be because:

• the economy still sucks. The government and banks and economists can all say it's getting better, but all those people who were unlucky enough to lose their jobs 18 months ago are not going to be spending money on luxuries; they're going to be paying off bills or putting away some extra money just in case this happens again.
• the handmade fad is starting to wane a bit. A couple of years ago, when the economy started to nosedive, lots of people turned back to homemade/grown/produced products to save money. Lots of those people sold their products, too... and now everyone and their dog makes something to sell. Add in a flooded market and you've got the perfect storm as to why no one is buying anything.
• there's a lot of crap out their and people don't have time (or the desire) to sift through it all. I went to the big local craft show last fall and wasn't impressed at all. There was a lot of amateur "crafters" who really should have just kept their work in their garages or basements to save themselves the hassle. I'm not saying what I do is the best in the world and that everyone loves it, but there's a reason Regretsy exists. 
• people got lazy and expected Etsy to do everything for them, including promotions and marketing. And solve their problems. Surprised some didn't expect Etsy to also tie their shoes and brush their hair.

I'm in the 'I don't blame Etsy' camp, mainly because I see Etsy as no different than the facility hosting a craft sale. It's my job as a show owner to make people see that I exist. I am in charge of promoting my shop and making people want to stay in my shop to make a purchase. Sure, it's nice when people find me through Etsy, but based on what Google Analytics is telling me, very few people do. I get more visitors from Twitter, this blog and other blogs I comment on than through Etsy.

Does that bother me? Nope.

Why not? Because the internet is a big place, and I count myself as lucky everytime someone finds me through Google or Craftgawker or some other method. I refuse to blame others for my failings, unless it's completely justified and provable. If I want people to see my work and buy my work, I have to do the work to get them, their eyes and their wallets to my shop. It's as simple as that.

And the internet is ever-evolving. People need to realize that. Things change, and usually it's for the better. What's the harm in letting people do their jobs and accepting that sometimes, "fixes" can take a little longer than expected because, well, they just do.

I know it's quite possible I'm going to end up slammed for what I have said and I really don't care. It's what I honestly believe and would have loved to say it in the forums, but anytime someone tries to say something like this (ie. it's not necessarily Etsy's fault you have no sales), they get ripped apart by the complainers. I'm willing to learn my lessons and try new things to get people's attention; I refuse to let other people force me to stand idly by and wait for "fixes" that I shouldn't need to operate a successful business.

So, yes... marketing and promotion. Need to work on that. And tweaking my photos, as well as gearing up for fall craft sales. I may be trying to come up with some new products soon and hope to post about them as they come along... although, based on my posting history thus far, there's no guarantee. Perhaps there's someone I could blame for that...

(the marigold pictured above is one of many that I picked up today at the best garden centre in the area - The Green Spot. I hate marigolds as a rule - something that dates back to when I was 5 or so and ate some of the seeds... pointy damn things going down... but these marigolds are going to be used in my battle against mosquitoes and aphids. Wish me luck:) )

Hop up, jump in...

My daughter LOVES Handy Manny (warning, there's an audio clip that starts when you click on the link). She will dance to the theme song, she recognizes the voices of the characters and gets really upset when I change the channel on her in the middle of an episode. I've tried to find Handy Manny toys for her age - she's almost 17 months - but haven't had any luck. Can't even find a t-shirt for her.

She's a very hands-on kid - she likes to examine things and try to take them apart. She also likes to do things that we do... quite typical for a toddler, I imagine. She's seen us use tools around the house and I don't know if she connects the tools to Handy Manny or not, but she likes to be right there beside us when we have to use any of our tools.

Yesterday, she was using one of her toys as a hammer. It wasn't a small toy or a soft one, it was a fairly large, heavy plastic toy that could do some pretty serious damage if she connected with the window properly. I decided then and there that I was going to make her some tools of her own.

Sure, we could have gone and picked up the plastic tool set from the store today, but that would defeat the purpose... we don't want her trying to hammer the windows or hitting herself in the head.  We also don't want to be stepping on more of her toys and yelping in pain while she's sleeping (we have a lot of plastic building bricks... a lot). So I decided to make her a soft tool set out of scraps of fabric and felt I had.

We have a massive roll of newsprint, thanks to Keith's job at the local daily (if you want some of this paper, check at your local paper... some places sell them for $10, but you can get a heck of a lot of paper for that), that we've been chipping away at for Maddy's colouring experiments, and it also makes for terrific pattern paper. I drew rough sketches of the tools I wanted to make - a saw, hammer, screwdriver, wrench and pliers - with chalk and cut them out. I didn't follow the lines to perfection, but added anywhere between 1/4-1/2" extra for a seam allowance.

I picked out the materials I was going to use on each tool and cut them out. The felt I used isn't the best quality, but it's decent, and paired with a strong thread, it shouldn't tear easily. Keep in mind, these are toys for a toddler; I'm pretty sure I'll be remaking at least one of these toys by summer. For the rest of the material, I had scraps of mostly 100% cotton to use, with the exception of the tartan, which is a poly/cotton blend.

I decided that rather than sew up the pieces with the right sides together and then turn them out and fill the with the fiberfill, I was going to just to a top-stitch. Sure, it's not as clean looking, but for simplicity, nothing can beat it. The biggest downside to that plan is that if you have an older machine, like I do, threads can go wonky and look really, really bad. But, these are toys for a toddler, presumably your own; if they object to playing with toys with a few flaws... well, I'm not one to judge, but Maddy didn't care. Neither did I. If I were to make these to sell to the general public, though, I'd be much more careful, and likely use my mom's much newer machine.

So I filled all the pieces with plain fiberfill - nothing fancy, nothing special. I have 2 bags of this stuff and even with this project, it doesn't look like I'll ever be getting rid of it. I don't use any special tools to tuck the fill into corners or tight spots, either... just a knitting needle and my fingers. I don't see the need to buy fancy tools for things you can either find in your home already... I was pushing out corners in my wallets and purses for the longest time using the handles of our butter knives. Perfect 90˚ angle, so why not?

I managed to get all the tools put together without doing any hand stitching, except the hammer - I had to do a quick whip stitch to attach the head to the handle. While they aren't the most sturdy tools, they are fairly firm - the firmness of any filled item will depend on how much fill you put into it. And the strength of your fabric and thread, too... you can't expect something like lightweight cotton to hold a lot of fill, nor can you expect a lightweight thread to hold material together to keep all that fill inside. I used medium to heavyweight cottons for the most part, with the exception - as I mentioned before - of the poly/cotton tartan. I am not going to lie and say there were no problems with the tartan... that handle of the screwdriver was by far the most difficult thing to sew and keep together once I filled it (the thread count is very low so there's no dense tension that helps keep things in place). I also used upholstery thread (347, to be exact) as my thread... as a nylon thread, it is more durable and has more strength. I also ran out of thread and didn't get to do the nails and screws I had wanted to do as well.

I like the tools I made. There are definite improvements I would have to make before I would even think of selling these to the public, but it took me just over 2 hours from drawing to giving them to Maddy to complete this project. Compared to my other work, 2 hours is nothing; it takes me 4-5 hours to make a purse and 2-3 hours to make a wallet. I'm going to show my work to my mom (my best sewing-educated judge) and see what she thinks. Maybe, just maybe, I'll have sets of these on my table at one of the craft shows this fall.

Next up for non-Etsy projects is sewing up the summer tops and dresses for Maddy. I'm hoping to get started on them next week and I will definitely post photos and give updates as to how the process is going. These will be the first pieces of clothing I've sewn from scratch in 20 years, so it should be interesting. Terrifying, but interesting.

Unbalanced

I made that list on Monday.

It's Friday.

I've done exactly one thing on that list - a new Etsy banner. And even that I haven't actually finished completely.

It hasn't been a busy week, it's been a badly organized week. Every day I've tried to get things done, but it's been really nice out (23-28C) and Maddy looooves being in the yard, so we've been spending a lot of time outside. When we're not outside, we're playing inside. I could spend less time playing with her, but she's developing some bad sleep habits so we've been trying to wear her out before bed.

Most of that list is marketing-related, something I need to get working on much more. But I also need to make more product to market, so that's what I'm spending today doing.

Hopefully...

A stitch in time...

I've been trying to figure out ways to incorporate embroidery into my work, and beyond this piece, I haven't had much solid success. In my pile of work that I've messed up (aka 'stuff that I'll eventually give to Maddy to play with'), I've got a few pieces that I tried to include some embroidered elements. It took a while for me to realize that although I knew I had the skills (self-taught, too... which surprises me more than you'd expect), I had no idea how to use them... PROPERLY.

I tend to rush my work. This isn't a shock to anyone who knows me - I'm that type of worker who will charge ahead, full speed, to get my work done as fast as possible so I can spend more time slacking off. Years of being a designer/editor and having to make small, stupid change after small, stupid change should have taught me that slowing down and checking things over before I think I'm done would be beneficial, but no.

So my need to slack - apparently, still - has firmly embedded itself into my new work life. Only in the last couple of weeks have I started to consciously take my time and make sure each step is complete before I move onto the next. Slowing down and being patient with my work has had one massive positive result: ZIPPERS. I like working with zippers so much (so far) that everything I've made in the last 2 weeks has a zipper. Now that I've conquered the zipper challenge, I'm totally ready to start working embroidery back into my pieces.

Such as the piece in the photo at the top of this post. Eventually - possibly Thursday - this will become the outer shell of a wallet I'm going to sell. I don't have any other embroidered pieces ready to go, but I'm purposely waiting until I've finished this wallet to see how using something like this works.

I like embroidery. I find it soothing. Maddy does not and makes it really difficult to do any work during the day, but I'm determined to get her to accept that this is what I'm going to do while she's playing. And because I do all my work freehand, there's no pressure of having to follow lines or a pattern... I do 'draw' an outline in chalk, but more often than not, I'll use it only as a general guide so I don't end up losing track of the space I can use.

I'm also working on a butterfly for Maddy's room. It's not perfectly symmetrical, but I think it'll be cute. I've been trying to work with Maddy in choosing the colours that will be worked into the piece, and when it's done, I'll frame it and hang it up. If all goes well, maybe it's another potentially sell-able product. Or maybe it'll just be one of those things I do for friends and family only.

Things are starting to pick up with my shop and my work... I'm trying new things, searching for new ways to promote what I do, and it looks like I'm getting more first-time viewers into my shop. No sales yet (!!!!!!), but they'll come. I figure if I keep working on what I'm doing and improving the product, it's only a matter of time until I get my first sale, and then my second and then it's an avalanche I can't keep up with. Yep, that's exactly how it's going to be... when it finally happens :)

Adding pieces to the puzzle

We live in a small house - maybe 700 sq ft - so finding space to do anything is a problem. It's even more of a problem when you need a large flat surface to cut material on. I could use the kitchen table, but it's usually occupied with my sewing machine, piles of cut material for projects, and whatever else we can squeeze on there. I was working on getting a bunch of material cut last week for future pieces and had to resort to using the top of our dryer in the laundry room (which is bigger than our bathroom and just a smidge smaller than Maddy's room) to cut. Not particularly easy when there's a rack full of not-quite-dry clothes to the immediate right, piles of neatly folded material on the washing machine on the left, and plastic storage tubs right behind. Small houses, while cozy and cheap, suck.

I was telling my mom about the issues I was having cutting material and she offered to get me a cutting board. I already had a self-healing cutting board that I thought I'd never use (it's turned into one of those things I can't imagine being without), but it's fairly small and virtually useless for the larger pieces of material I need to cut for the bags I've started making.

So on Saturday, my mom bought me a 36"x60" cutting board (not that brand, though... we got a Unique one). She had one when I was growing up that she stored in the kitchen with her sewing machine, and used it a lot because there were no self-healing cutting boards back then. Over time, it got lost or wrecked so she couldn't pass it on to me, so I got a brand new one.

(An aside - H.A. Kidd and Company is my favourite notions/supplies company... and not just because they're Canadian, but because they make damn good products.)

Another wonderful addition to my sewing life has been this:

A tackle box.

I had thought about getting a tool box to help keep all the bits and bobs I have in order, but none of the ones at the store seemed to fit my needs. And they were more expensive than the tackle box I did end up getting, which is also made of recycled plastic, so two birds, one stone and all that. I'm still working on a way to keep all the zippers in order (a safety pin through them all didn't work) but I like how everything has a place and I can see what I have without having to dig everything else out to find it.

I've got a pile of pieces I need to finish up before I can list them, but I'm aiming to have at least one piece in my shop every day. Whether or not that actually happens is another question, but it's nice to have something to aim for.

Finding the path

See that pouch there? The one with the super-soft faux suede exterior and cute tartan interior? The one that should be appearing in my shop later this week?

It's part of the creative epiphany I had yesterday. It's also the first thing I've ever put a zipper into, but that's not important right now (well, it is, but it isn't).

Yesterday was Star Wars Day, and as a fairly big Star Wars fan (eps. 4-6 more than 1-3), I decided to make Yoda's 'Do or do not. There is no try.' line from Empire Strikes Back my personal mantra. (If someone feels really generous *ahem, Denise*, I'd love this shirt for my birthday :).) No more piles of things I'm going to try or waste time thinking about trying; I waste enough time as it is, I need to spend what useful time I do have being productive.

And then Etsy sent out their latest Success email - making mistakes is okay, learning from them is even better - something I've needed to hear from someone besides Keith (who's encouragement I always appreciate, no matter what) and my family. I have a massive pile of mistakes I've made, but I can probably look at every piece and find something that I can take from each one and use it in the future. Kind of ties into the whole Yoda, thing, too... in a slightly indirect way.

And I finally found some patterns and designs that are just for me. I think the biggest problem I've had up until now with most of my work is that I've been trying to outdo myself at every turn. My skill level isn't much above intermediate beginner, but I was setting myself up for a guaranteed fail on almost everything I was working on by choosing designs that were geared towards experienced seamstress/seamsters. So now I've finally found things that don't frighten me by point two of the instructions and I think I can actually produce some pretty damn decent pieces at a quicker rate than I was before.

I was working on a new purse design for almost a week before I had my epiphany... I had spent four or five hours trying to figure out how to put a decorative band around the top of the bag. FOUR OR FIVE HOURS... that's just ridiculous by anyone's standards. So I've set it aside and I will return to it, just not any time soon. And that's perfectly fine with me.

Now that I've turned that corner, I can start looking at other parts of my business and figure out how to straighten them out. Like the complete lack of organization that just seems to run rampant throughout my life... I keep meaning to do something about it, but haven't found the time (or desire) to do so. With what I'm hoping will be more useful time available to me, there should be no excuse. Or, one hopes.

A week ago, I was ready to throw in the towel, I'm feeling good about where this is headed now. The only thing that can hold me back is me. Funny that it took this long to figure that out, but at least I realized it before I did just stop and turn my back on it completely.

Getting there

Check out my Photoblog for more picks like this one.

It's been a week. That's the best way to describe it - gathering with family to celebrate my uncle's life, finding out that student loans really do haunt you years after you're finished with school, trying to keep up with Maddy, figuring out what we're doing with the yard this year... and it's only Thursday.

I've gained a lot of energy this week, though, likely due to the amount of time we're spending outside with the weather being so nice. Even a half hour or so a day seems to be doing wonders, not only for me, but for Keith and Maddy, too. Maddy looooooves our backyard, especially the slight hill we've got coming up to the house. I can hardly wait until we get the fence in next month and she can run freely rather than us chasing her to the edges of the property.

And even though we've been snow-free for a month now, I'm not even going to attempt to plant anything for a few more weeks. The forecast for early next week is calling for snow and a high of only 4C (39F) on day, so there's no point in gearing up the garden only to have it freeze and die. But that doesn't mean I can't plan what I'm putting in (and taking out this year - 3 annuals and a rose bush... hopefully to other gardens) before we get it rototilled and prepped for the actual planting.

But today I've got work to do. Lots of work. Tonnes of work. Will I get it all done? Heck, no, but I figure it's better to have a list to work with than try to do it without any sort of organization at all.

What I need to do:

• finish the new bag design I started on Tuesday. To do this, I need to get to the store to pick up a pack of fasteners. Once I've got them, though, it shouldn't take me long to complete it... if I don't screw it up. I've learned to take my time and that the iron is really a good tool, so if I can keep from going at this all willy-nilly, it should turn out well. *fingers crossed* 
• finish the embroidery work on a couple of pieces. It's not really embroidery work, per se, but it's work with an embroidery needle and floss. I'm trying to add a bit of uniqueness to some of my pieces by finishing them by hand. Not sewing machine, but hand, as the lovely calouses on my thumbs and right middle finger can confirm.
• keep tweaking my branding. I'm still working at getting everything I have my name on (like cards, Etsy and Twitter, so far) to have a similar look. For the most part, almost everything uses the same fonts, but doesn't necessarily look the same. I've got an idea of what I want to do with the banner here, but can't actually do anything until the battery for my camera is charged. Then there's the question of redesigning this particular blog, especially when I own nisseworks.com. Decisions, decisions.
• marketing, promoting and networking. I feel like I've plastered my business everywhere, but I know there's still a lot of work to do and that it's never ending. Yay.

And I've got my month-end to do tomorrow, as well as catch up on all the rest of the paperwork I've been slacking off on for the last month, too... necessary evil and all that. Once that's all done, I imagine there'll be some changes I have to make to my shop and decisions that will be made about opening a second shop somewhere else for the other crafts/arts that I've been thinking about doing. But for now, I'll stick to doing the creative stuff... it's what I'm relatively decent at... I think.

Hack

I'm slowly getting over a chest/bronchial infection/laryngitis/sinus cold, so I've been a wee bit lax in posting here.

I'm hoping to change that tomorrow. I may even have a new piece to show off... if I can figure out the mechanics of how to close it.

Enjoy what's left of the weekend :)

Mmmm....

Ah.

New iMac.

Now I can get to work. Hopefully, I'll have a post up later about the new products I'm working on, the new computer we've got and an update on the photo fixing adventures at my Etsy store.

Woot. Woot.

:)

1000 words

These are two pieces from my Etsy shop. While the pieces themselves are pretty awesome (if I do say so myself), the photos leave a lot to the imagination.

And that's why I've decided to take new photos. Like these:

While making a photo light box can be easy - or complicated - I think I've found a really simple, inexpensive way to create a light box effect.

How?

87¢ of Bristol board - or heavy posterboard.  And my laundry room with a south-facing window and useful shadows.

It also helps to have a someone in your house who knows about white balance and shadows in photography, too.

I'm going to be spending my weekend re-shooting all of my pieces for my store. It's a small - but beneficial - part of the marketing plan that I'm 'launching' tomorrow. Another part of that plan is a re-tooling of this blog, which includes a slight re-design and the addition of additional pages. Forewarned is forearmed, so don't be too surprised to see a new layout this weekend. I hope.

Taking missteps

Things are... progressing. Slowly, but surely... I'm having issues finishing anything I've started, usually because I get lost halfway through. This week, I've learned the benefits of reading - and following - instructions, SLOWLY, as well as trying to keep myself from becoming too overwhelmed. Of course, both of those lessons went in one ear (eye?) and right out the other. Yee. Haw.

I've started half a dozen projects this week and I think I could theoretically put on in my store. That's not only a lot of wasted time, but a lot of wasted material. I figure that within the last week, I spent close to 20 hours working just on these projects - that's just the cutting and sewing, keep that in mind. And I've got one semi-reasonable piece to put in my store. Yikes. At this rate, I'm going to have a lot - A LOT - of 'flawed' pieces to give away to family and friends.

But I'm trying to stay positive by looking at different designs and procedures that might make my job - or my attempt at it - a bit easier. I'm not a professional seamstress by any stretch - I'm a recreational one, if anything. But I know my limits and don't want to start thinking I can do things that are well beyond my abilities (which usually results in... that's right, wasted time and materials). There's also that risk of boredom if I stick with doing one thing, over and over again.

Which is why I was quite happy to find two books in Chapters' online store that I could finally use the $30 gift card I got for Christmas on.

Bags of Inspriation and Carry Me were the two books I ended up choosing. There were hundreds of others I may have liked, but these two seemed to be the ones that would (a) help me come up with some new ideas and (b) teach me some new techniques in the easiest and simplest ways possible.

 A few of the projects in Carry Me.

I haven't had much of a chance to really go through either of them, but from the brief glimpses I've had, these books are going to help me a lot. There are some things that I'm just not interested in in both books, but for the most part, they both are definitely worth the price (and Carry Me includes the pattern pieces for each project in the back... big, BIG help).

For the time being, I'm going to keep plugging away at what I've started to branch out into this week - wallets (not just for carrying cards anymore!), laptop sleeves and brush/pen rolls. I wish that I had more time - or at least more consecutive time - to do my work. The start-stop work pattern that exists for me is very, very challenging and I'm finding that my to-do list is just getting pushed back every day. It's a daily battle - work on projects or attempt to get some business stuff done?

Sigh... maybe sleep is overrated...

Lessons learned

Spring is apparently here. It's been here for a few weeks, actually, which is a bit unheard of in my neck of the woods. The sight of green grass and warmer temperatures has made a lot of people - including me, for the most part - happier. I wouldn't say that there's a great outbreak of SAD around here, but months of cold and only 8 hours of sun and 2+ feet of snow makes people grumpy. Myself included.

I've managed to introduce four new pieces to my Etsy store this week. I had intended on a few more, but buttonholes got the best of me. Lousy - and kind of inexplicable - excuse, I know, but it's true. And I have a photo to prove it.

I have tried to make buttonholes with my sewing machine, using the handy-dandy buttonholer attachment. Failed miserably. So I figured that they had to make buttonholes with hand at some point in history and did some research.

That photo above? Yeah, that's what I ended up with, following the instructions. I wouldn't say I'm an expert embroiderer or needlepointer, but I am decent. That button hole there? Eep. Wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy. I had done up a couple of other wallets with the handmade buttonholes and decided that they were not worth attempting to sell... the holes turned out so bad that I felt bad even giving them to Maddy to play with.

I've come to accept the fact that I cannot make buttonholes to save my life. I love buttons, though, so what to do with a cookie tin of random buttons (vintage, military, tiny, massive, all kinds)? I think I have a solution: I have a few dozen sew-on snaps in silver, black and clear. I'm going to try using them as the actual closure, while using a button as a decoratation on the outside... if that makes any sense.

Over the next few days, I hope to be posting a bit more what I'm doing - and hope to do - as well as what blogs I'm addicted to for inspration and ideas. And, with fingers crossed for some free time, there's always the potential of some cosmetic changes coming to this blog... or not. I'd side with not at this point in the week. Heck, I'd say it's a sure bet right now :)

Perchance, to dream

Sleep.

Being the mom to a 14-almost-15 month old, I don't get a lot of sleep. Especially right now with two teeth coming in... I can hardly wait until this stage is completely over.

Long story, short, I have four new pieces in my Etsy store and hope to have at least one more up by the end of this week. No major appointments (yet) or out-of-town trips to take, so I should be able to get some work done that does not involve spreadsheets or calculators.

And I will have a new post tomorrow, perhaps in the morning. It all depends on how Maddy sleeps tonight and how I'm feeling in the morning. There wasn't enough coffee in the world this morning to help me find my bearings... perhaps it was a good thing she went for an early nap at 8:30 am.

Keeping above water

This is what my desk currently looks like.

I may try to straighten it up later today, but laundry and finishing up some pieces for my Etsy store are a bit more of a priority. And taking care of Maddy. And trying to sort out the grocery flyers for next week's shopping trip.

And that is why my desk looks like a disaster area. I will say, though, that I can be organized when I have to be. Anything that is really important - personal info, financial info, etc - is open, reviewed and filed away pretty quickly. It's all the extra stuff that piles up... like my 1970s headphones (which still rock today), month-old flyers and hand creams that seem to multiply like Gremlins.

I will be posting lightly this weekend as my favourite fabric store is having a massive sale and I'm in need of some new material and notions to work with.  I will post an update on my store when (not if) I've got the new pieces up and will try to post something about what I plan on attempting next.

Have a good weekend!